Debt Ceiling

Suppose you're an average American. You've got rent, student loans, a car loan or two, and some credit cards. You're married, with no children, and your spouse works. You're a DINK (double-income, no kids). You can afford it all, with money to spare for nice things like foreign travel. You're even close to "rich" depending on who's defining that term.

Suppose then that you decide to buy a home (because that's the American Dream) and have a family. You've got great credit! Why not? You take on a mortgage and the expense of caring for the next generation, and in the process reduce your income in exchange for more time with the family. But you're doing the responsible things.

You buy a pool and build a deck and add an extension onto the house, and next thing you know, your credit lines are all maxed out, and the folks that are your creditors are wondering whether you can stay afloat, to say nothing of taking on more.

You're employed, earning good coin, more than able to pay the monthly bills (if you don't spend any more than you must), and more than slightly insulted by the insinuation that maybe you can't pay the bills.

So, if you follow the US government's lead, you:

1) tell your lenders that it's all over in 2 months, you'll default
2) ask said lenders for a credit limit increase
3) blame your last boss for your troubles

Or, you tighten your belt and pay off your debts, even if it takes twenty years...but no one's advocating that answer.